Some of you may know me already, especially those who shop or sell goods at the Meaford Municipal Farmers' Market where I make and sell Apple Fritters. But others may not, especially those from the west part of the municipality. Let me introduce myself, so you can get a little picture of who I am, or at least as much as one can get from a webpage.
I moved to Meaford with my family in 1999 from Kitchener, ON. I am happily married to my beautiful wife, Denise and together we have three awesome children, Taylor, Alexander and Allison.
It is true that I am 37 and I have no political experience. However I have experience working on several Boards and Committees, including as President of the Meaford & District Co-operative Preschool and as President of Aventine Co-operative Homes in Kitchener. Many of our candidates are new to politics, but anyone out there trying to devalue younger candidates are forgetting that younger people have had experiences and through those, experience too.
I was born in Ontario, but spent a good deal of my childhood in British Columbia. My family moved back to Ontario when I was in the 8th grade. My high school years were spent in Milton and when I met my now wife and got married we moved to Kitchener and started our family. I longed for the beauty of B.C. and startlingly when I first came to Meaford, I fell in love with the water, the landscapes of the escarpment and the community. I knew I was home and we moved here and grew our family. My youngest daughter was even born right here in Meaford, in our home.
Like many of you, I have experienced many ups and downs in the job market since moving to Meaford. I have worked at two places which have closed up shop - Goodyear and United Rentals. Making a living in Meaford is often difficult.
My dedication and professionalism have served me well in the past and I was highly recognised for these traits during my career as an Insurance Adjuster and Quality Specialist with the world's largest independent provider of claims solutions, Crawford & Company. I had the pleasure of dealing with people on one of the worst, most stressful days of their lives and I was responsible for getting them back to life as normal, serving them from the beginning of a claim to the end. In this position I interviewed policyholders, lawyers, emergency services, doctors, police departments, the Ministry of Transportation and more, my communications had to be superior and clear and I was highly respected by those I interviewed. I was recognised for my excellent customer service to both the internal and external customer base, receiving more letters of accolades than any other adjuster in my office. These types of positions are not something you can take lightly, and neither is a role on Council. I am dedicated to completing what I start, to teamwork, to open and honest communication and these are the qualities I will bring to the table as your Councillor, your voice, your representative for the next 4 years. When you look at me, do not look at my age, rather listen to my words, look at my actions and look to the future. I will take care of business
I am a no-nonsense person. You will find that I am a good listener and open minded. I think it is important to listen to the public - there is always going to be more than one public interest out there, but it is the duty of elected officials to listen to the public who communicate with them. Elected officials are there to represent the public, not for their own amusement or interest.
